- Bogazici University
Dept. of Western Languages and Literatures, Film Studies Program
Bebek, Istanbul 34342
Turkey
- Documentary Film, Documentary Production, Documentary (Film Studies), Theory of Documentary, Turkish Documentary Cinema, Kurdish Documentary Cinema, and 44 moreDocumentary (Communication), Animated Documentary, Webdocumentary, iDocs, I docs, Interactive Documentary, Oral history, Visual Anthropology, Ethnographic Film, Auto-ethnography, Media Studies, Film Studies, Photography, Cinema, Film & Digital Video, First Person Documentary, Film History, Video Art, Media Arts, Film Theory and Practice, First Person Film, First Person Cinema, New Media Art & Emerging Practices, Media Theory, Digital media Production, Film Production, Television History, 'Third Cinema' Theory and Third World Radical Films, Film in Archaeology and Anthropology, Moving Image Exhibition, Turkish-German Cinema, Film and social change, Social Change, Social Activism, Digital Storytelling, Turkish Cinema, Kurdish Cinema, First Person, Turkish and Middle East Studies, Photography Theory, History of photography, Photography (Visual Studies), Digital Cinema, and Visual Studiesedit
- I am an independent filmmaker and a faculty member at Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey. I have a BA from Hampshi... moreI am an independent filmmaker and a faculty member at Bogazici University, Istanbul, Turkey. I have a BA from Hampshire College/USA in film and video, and an MFA (terminal degree, comparable to a PhD) from Temple University/USA in film and media arts.
I have taught film courses and workshops in universities and media education centers in the USA and in Turkey. At Bogazici, I teach documentary history, theory, criticism; documentary cinema in Turkey and mentor film-related projects and theses. I published "Kurdish Documentary Cinema of Turkey" (2016, Cambridge Scholars Publishing) an edited book with Suncem Koçer (PhD). I am working on a new book (in Turkish) on the history of documentary cinema in Turkey with Sonay Ban (PhD). I was a founding member of docIstanbul Center for Documentary Studies, host of the 2010 Visible Evidence International Documentary Studies Conference at Bogazici University.
As a filmmaker since 1989, my works have been screened internationally at festivals, conferences, schools, universities, in galleries, cinemas, and on TV. My three award-winning feature length documentary films are in international distribution and I have been working on "Nuclear alla Turca,” a new feature documentary film on the nuclear stories of Turkey.
In 2005, I resigned as the chair of the Film and TV Department of Istanbul Bilgi University after the university administration refused to take action on a sexual harassment case and I was subsequently dismissed. In 2012, I helped establish Bogaziçi University's Sexual Harassment Prevention Commission. In 2014, I resigned as the head of the jury of the national documentary film competition at the Antalya International Film Festival, Turkey, calling attention to the censoring of a documentary about the Gezi Park Uprising. In January 2016, I was one of the 2212 signatories of the Academics for Peace declaration calling on the Turkish Government to end the violence against the Kurdish population and resolve the conflict through peaceful means. Along with all the signatories, I was accused of "making propaganda for a terrorist organization" and tried in a heavy penal court facing a minimum jail sentence of 15 months. Following the constitutional court’s ruling in favor of freedom of speech in 2019, I was acquitted of all charges.
Since January 2021, I have been actively participating in and documenting the ongoing Bogazici University resistance. I was the academic advisor of Bogaziçi's LGBTI+ student club, closed down in February 2021 by the government. On July 16th, 2021, after 14 years of teaching full-time at Bogaziçi University, I was unjustly and unlawfully dismissed from my position by the appointed rector, which was regarded null and void by the Bogazici University community. A number of international campaigns were organized in solidarity. I fought a legal battle against my dismissal and in April 2022 I was re-instated after the court ruled that my dismissal was unlawful. Despite this ruling, I was dismissed once again by the same appointed rector in July 2022. I once again took the university administration to court, with full support of the Bogazici University community and my union. The administrative court nullified my dismissal once again and I was re-instated in June 2023. In July 2023, I was dismissed for a third time despite the previous court decisions and have initiated a new legal battle...
In 2021, I received the Turkish Film Critics Association (SIYAD)’s Honor Award and became a member of the Honor Board of the Association of University Faculty (UNIVDER) in Turkey. I continue to actively advocate for peace, human rights, freedom of speech and expression as well as environmental protection.
Filmography:
"NUCLEAR ALLA TURCA" (in development): a feature-length documentary looking at the history of the nuclear in Turkey, as the country's first nuclear plant is under construction by Russia despite public opposition.
"ÇATALHÖYÜK IN THE MAKING" (in development): a documentary about Çatalhöyük, the world-famous archeological site of a 9000 year-old Neolithic settlement in the central plains of Turkey, still in the making.
"MY CHILD" (2013): a feature-length documentary about a very courageous and inspiring group of mothers and fathers in Istanbul, who are parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-gender individuals.
“3 HOURS” (2008): a feature-length documentary witnessing six Istanbul high-school seniors’ year-long trials and tribulations to have the right to study at a university.
“DUVARLAR, MAUERN, WALLS” (2000): a feature-length documentary about the Turkish immigrant community in post-Wall Berlin.
“EXODUS” (1991): a short documentary about the 1989 exodus of ethnic Turks from Bulgaria.
“BOYCOTT COKE” (1989): a short agit-prop video about the anti-Apartheid Coca-Cola boycott.edit
Russia is building Turkey's very first nuclear power plant, after Turkey's unrelenting 40-year quest, and with a history of nuclear weapons, radioactive fallout and waste on its territory, as well as a 40-year old anti-nuclear movement.... more
Russia is building Turkey's very first nuclear power plant, after Turkey's unrelenting 40-year quest, and with a history of nuclear weapons, radioactive fallout and waste on its territory, as well as a 40-year old anti-nuclear movement. Nuclear alla Turca is a feature length documentary film-in-development about the sometimes unsettling, sometimes tragicomical, and most of the time absurd history of the “nuclear” in Turkey. (For more info: http://nuclearallaturca.com/)
Research Interests:
What happens when your child comes out to you? MY CHILD is about a very courageous and inspiring group of parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender individuals in Turkey, who redefine what it means to be parents, family and activists... more
What happens when your child comes out to you? MY CHILD is about a very courageous and inspiring group of parents of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender individuals in Turkey, who redefine what it means to be parents, family and activists in a conservative, homophobic and trans-phobic society. (For more info: http://www.mychilddocumentary.com/)
Research Interests:
“3 Hours” is a feature length documentary about the University Student Selection Exam in Turkey. Once a year over 1.5 million applicants sweat over a multiple-choice test for an uninterrupted duration of 180 minutes or 3 hours with hopes... more
“3 Hours” is a feature length documentary about the University Student Selection Exam in Turkey. Once a year over 1.5 million applicants sweat over a multiple-choice test for an uninterrupted duration of 180 minutes or 3 hours with hopes to obtain the right to higher education. Many consider this exam a “life-and-death matter,” as both the applicants and their families endure an overwhelming amount of pressure during this process. “3 Hours” focuses on the personal dimension of this experience, by following the lives of six high school seniors from different socio-economic backgrounds for more than a year. We witness the thoughts, emotions, and aspirations of these six young people and those around them, before, during, and after the exam, while the filmmakers are the observers, witnesses, intruders, and guests in the lives of these young women and men. (For more info: http://3saat.net)
Research Interests:
Duvarlar-Mauern-Walls, is a trilingual (Turkish, German, English) feature-length documentary film about a moment in the recent history of the largest minority in re-unified, post-Wall Berlin: the immigrant community from Turkey, as... more
Duvarlar-Mauern-Walls, is a trilingual (Turkish, German, English) feature-length documentary film about a moment in the recent history of the largest minority in re-unified, post-Wall Berlin: the immigrant community from Turkey, as witnessed by a Turkish filmmaker from the USA. In the aftermath of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the unification of the two Germanys, 1991 was the year when anti-foreigner violence in Germany was becoming too visible to ignore. 1991 was also the 30th anniversary of the beginning of the migration from Turkey to Germany. In this film, Berliners from Turkey talk about their past, present, and possible future, reflecting on what the fall of the Wall and the subsequent unification meant for them and how increasing hostilities are affecting their sense of identity and belonging in the new Germany. Duvarlar-Mauern-Walls, is a personal view from the periphery by a filmmaker, who is simultaneously an insider and an outsider. (For more info: https://duvarlarmauernwalls.blogspot.com)
Research Interests:
Exodus is an experimental short documentary about the mass exodus of ethnic Bulgarian Turks from Bulgaria to Turkey during the summer of 1989 and its deep impact. It is an attempt to find ways to represent and talk about this tragedy... more
Exodus is an experimental short documentary about the mass exodus of ethnic Bulgarian Turks from Bulgaria to Turkey during the summer of 1989 and its deep impact. It is an attempt to find ways to represent and talk about this tragedy while giving voice to a group of people who usually do not have a chance to let their voices be heard, who are considered statistical numbers that add up to make an "ethnic minority". As the interviews with the ethnic Turks give an account of the exodus as its happening, the filmmaker’s own subjective and descriptive narration illuminates the plight of these people and their desire to maintain their cultural identity in the face of oppression and a forced exodus to the "homeland", while calling attention to issues of representation. Winner of “Outstanding Student Video Award” at the 1991 New England Video and Film Festival in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Research Interests: Human Rights, Balkan Studies, Turkish and Middle East Studies, Ethnic and Racial Studies, Forced Migration, and 8 moreMigration Studies, Ethnic Conflict, Documentary Film, Bulgarian history, Ethnic Conflict and Human Rights, Refugees and Forced Migration Studies, Representation of Ethnic Minorities in the media, and Forced migration and displacement
Without a doubt, this decade’s most discussed and developed documentary productions in Turkey come from Kurdistan, a name that provokes nationalist panic in Turkey, yet delineates distinct cultural, linguistic, and political boundaries... more
Without a doubt, this decade’s most discussed and developed documentary productions in Turkey come from Kurdistan, a name that provokes nationalist panic in Turkey, yet delineates distinct cultural, linguistic, and political boundaries nonetheless. Documentary film productions by Kurdish filmmakers from Turkey determine the major tendencies of this emergent genre, with such productions offering a unique opportunity for a nuanced understanding of national cinema. The larger body of films, fiction and non-fiction termed as Kurdish cinema complicates the category of national cinema, a concept discussed heatedly within the field of cinema studies. Documentary film is proving to be a particularly complex tool for the Kurdish social and political existence, as Kurds lack the official tools of history-writing and cultural preservation that are categorically associated with the capacities of a state. By delving into Kurdish documentary films as products of complex societal, political, and historical processes, the articles in the volume highlight the intersections of media production, film text, and audience reception, and expand on vibrant debates in the field of film and media studies through situated case studies. Bringing these chapters together, this book will stimulate academic discussion around this emergent and lively genre of documentary film production, and encourage further research and publication.
Research Interests:
This chapter attempts to situate Kurdish documentary filmmaking within the history and politics of documentary cinema in Turkey by giving a historical overview. Although Kurds have been subjects of documentary photography and film for... more
This chapter attempts to situate Kurdish documentary filmmaking within the history and politics of documentary cinema in Turkey by giving a historical overview. Although Kurds have been subjects of documentary photography and film for more than a century, it is only in the last two decades that we can begin to see the emergence of a Kurdish documentary cinema. Tracing the origins of Kurdish documentary filmmaking to the Mesopotamia Cultural Center’s Cinema Collective of the mid-1990s, this chapter follows its emergence and development to date to include very recent output and activity. Focusing on the films, the filmmakers, the institutions, as well as the audiences both in Turkey and in the transnational Kurdish diaspora, it analyzes the contexts within which these films were produced, and searches for common themes and modes, and possible sub-genres. By situating Kurdish documentary filmmaking within the history of documentary cinema in Turkey, it identifies a documentary practice and heritage which is fertile ground for self/cultural expression in resistance and in constant interaction with other filmmakers in the region and in the diaspora.
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Research Interests:
Haziran başında Documentarist’in konuğu olarak istanbul’a gelen Amerikalı belgeselci Alan Berliner, çalışma sürecini filmlerinden örneklerle anlattığı sinema dersinde sık sık Gezi Parkı Direnişi’nden bahsetmekten de kendini alamadı.
Boğaziçi Üniversitesi Folklor Kulübü (BÜFK) olarak belgesel sinemacı ve akademisyen Can Candan ile toplumsal bellek üzerinde önemli bir işlevi olan sinema üzerine konuştuk. Sinemanın günümüz Türkiye'sinde hem yapım hem gösterim aşamasında... more
Boğaziçi Üniversitesi Folklor Kulübü (BÜFK) olarak belgesel sinemacı ve akademisyen Can Candan ile toplumsal bellek üzerinde önemli bir işlevi olan sinema üzerine konuştuk. Sinemanın günümüz Türkiye'sinde hem yapım hem gösterim aşamasında nasıl süreçlerden geçtiği üzerine tartıştığımız söyleşimizi sizlerle paylaşıyoruz.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
16 Ton (2011) belgeselinin yönetmeni Ümit Kıvanç'ın konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
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Eski Şehir'den Son Havadis (2006) belgeselinin yönetmeni Mustafa Ünlü'nün konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
Research Interests:
Dûr* (2005) belgeselinin yönetmeni Kazım Öz'ün konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
* Uzak
* Uzak
Research Interests:
38 (2006) ve 5 Nolu Cezaevi (2009) belgeselinin yönetmeni Çayan Demirel'in konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
Research Interests: Documentary (Film Studies), Kurdish Studies, Documentary Cinema, Turkey, Modern Turkey, and 14 moreDocumentary Film, Documentary Filmmaking, Kurdistan, Documentary, Dersim Studies, Dersim, Oral History and Documentary, Kurdish history, Zazaki, Dimili Studies, Zaza Identity, Dedes in Dersim: Narratives of Violence and Persecution, Dersim Region (Turkey), Dersim Aşiretleri, and Zazaki Studies
5 Nolu Cezaevi (2009) belgeselinin yönetmeni Çayan Demirel'in konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
Research Interests:
Kafesteki Kuş Gibiydik (2009), Bölge (2010) ve Kadınlar Grevde (2010) belgesellerinin yönetmenleri Güliz Sağlam ve Feryal Saygılıgil'in konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri Programı. (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan) Yayınlanma tarihi :... more
Kafesteki Kuş Gibiydik (2009), Bölge (2010) ve Kadınlar Grevde (2010) belgesellerinin yönetmenleri Güliz Sağlam ve Feryal Saygılıgil'in konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri Programı. (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)
Yayınlanma tarihi : 06-07-2012
Yayınlanma tarihi : 06-07-2012
Research Interests:
Ayrılığın Yurdu Hüzün (2001) ve Yeni Bir Yurt Edinmek (2006) belgesellerinin yönetmeni Enis Rıza'nın konuk olduğu Belgesel Sohbetleri programı (Hazırlayan ve sunan: Can Candan)